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Bes

(Meaning unknown, but may be derivative from the same root as the Netjer-name of Bast) A Name of Netjer with unknown but probably Sub-Saharan origin, Bes is unusually depicted as a man of dwarf stature, facing forward (as opposed to the nearly universal canonical profile), wearing the mask and tail of a lion and carrying a large knife. Bes is the Name associated most strongly with protection of the household and specifically its children and pregnant women; he was also seen (possibly also explaining his depiction as a Pygmy-like being, as Pygmies were known to serve a court-jester function in the Old Kingdom) as the patron of laughter, dancing, happiness and fertility. Bes's masked face with lolling tongue can be seen on amulets and pieces of furniture throughout Kemetic history as well as funerary stelae of the Late Period.